Daniel Wolfe

Daniel Wolfe is editor in chief at PaymentsSource and a contributing editor at American Banker. He was previously tech and risk management editor for American Banker. He has also been American Banker's editor for technology, cards and payments and its technology reporter. He has a master's degree in print journalism from Boston University's College of Communication and a bachelor's degree in English from SUNY Binghamton.

Mobile wallets have always been a hard sell. In many countries, credit and debit cards work well enough that consumers don't want to learn a new way to pay. But banks and technology companies are committed to bringing their wallet apps to market. In an effort to stay competitive, these companies have spent considerable effort to get their wallets to stand out not only against competitors, but against the compelling option to keep using cash and cards.

More retailers are accepting mobile wallets, but few agree on what that entails. Many stores are coming up with their own wallets by building on past successes or burying payments deep under the surface of their mobile channel.